Stay on target

Although it may be bad for the corporate bottom line, when a video game platform holder doesn’t do as well as they’d hope they tend to launch bold new initiatives to lure players back in. And the results are cool new features for gamers to enjoy. The PlayStation 4 wouldn’t have been this accessible without the PlayStation 3’s hubris. The Nintendo Switch’s concept wouldn’t have been so clear if the Wii U wasn’t so confusing.

And one of the best ongoing examples of this trend is Microsoft’s treatment of the Xbox One. Although the Xbox 360 was very successful, it taught Redmond the wrong lessons like people want Kinect and invasive home entertainment connections and no way to play used games. But in trying to catch up with the PS4 the Xbox One has become way cooler with functionality like backwards compatibility and the ultra-powerful Xbox One X, the best way to play Red Dead Redemption 2. And soon one of the best recent Xbox One perks, Xbox Game Pass, can be yours even if you don’t have an Xbox. The subscription service is also coming to PC.

As there are more and more video games just out in the world, players dream about a Netflix-style subscription service where they can just access the entire library at once to play whenever they see fit. And since last year, Xbox Game Pass has been just that, granting subscribers online access to 100 Xbox games (including very big games like Forza Horizon 4 the day they come out) for just $10 per month. At a quarterly earnings call Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said the service will also be coming to Windows PCs at some point.

For players, this is nothing but good news. It gives millions more people the chance to use a truly great gaming service without having to buy an extra piece of hardware. But it is weird that Microsoft is giving people another excuse not to buy that hardware. Couple this with an increasing amount of Microsoft games being cross-buy on both Xbox and PC and you figure even Microsoft doesn’t see the current Xbox as the centerpiece of its gaming plans. Or maybe this is all just a planned lull before Microsoft really rallies behind the next-generation Xbox surely coming soon.